The Howl In The Trees

The Teague Vs Rubio Debate The trade that sent Ricky Rubio to the Utah Jazz this off-season was a shock for some, a relief for others and sure reminder that Tom Thibodeau is building this team the way he desires. Thibs, Scott Layden and the Timberwolves front office followed this move up just hours later, signing former Indiana Pacers Guard Jeff Teague to a 3-year, 57 million dollar contract. The move had mixed reactions shuttering through the fan base. ... Some believe Teague will bring the shooting touch Rubio so sorely lacked, others think Rubio's passing ability and leadership will not be fulfilled to the same level by Teague. The basic statistics tell a similar story. Teague scores better and more efficiently than his counterpart – 15.3PPG on 44/36/87 shooting splits compared to Rubio's 11.1PPG on 40/30/89 shooting – while Rubio is a much more efficient passer and floor general – 9.1 assists and 2.6 turnovers per game compared to Teague's 7.8 assi...

Roster Previews - Part Seven Gorgui Dieng C/PF - 6'11 2016/17 Season Stats: 10.0PPG - 7.9RPG - 1.9APG - 1.2BPG - 1.3TOPG - 50.2FG% - 37.2 3PT% - 81.4FT% A fan and coach favourite, Gorgui Dieng's role is predicted to change to more of a bench rotation player this coming season, but the Louisville products importance to the Timberwolves remains strong. Another effective, yet unspectacular season has Dieng firmly asserted as a key piece to this rising Minnesota team. His numbers stayed very similar to the prior season, he rebounds effectively, plays good (not great) team defense and can swat away his fair share of shots, he is the type of player good teams need to plug the holes between their stars. His feel for the game has clearly improved since his debut season, averaging less turnovers this season compared with last (1.7 to 1.3) despite playing more minutes (27.1 to 32.4), early in his career Dieng was prone to travelling and general issues with adju...

Roster Previews - Part Six Jamal Crawford SG/PG - 6'5 2016/17 Season Stats: 12.3PPG - 1.4RPG - 2.6APG - 0.7SPG - 1.6TOPG - 41.3FG% - 36.0 3PT% - 85.7FT% In the past one key signing in an off-season would be enough to make Timberwolves fans salivate, but when the news broke that Jamal Crawford had agreed to a deal to come to the Twin Cities, Wolves fans knew the long(!) awaited end to the rebuild had finally come. In Crawford, 37, the Wolves get a veteran 6th man, something they have sorely lacked the last few seasons to partner with stars Andrew Wiggins, Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns. Father Time still holds his unbeaten record, but JCrossover is giving him a run for his money . At age 36 Crawford averaged over 12 Points Per Game, hitting the outside shot at a respectable rate and in signature fashion, bruising plenty of ankles along the way. The defensive end of the floor has never been Crawfords strong suit, and another year in the tough Western Conf...

Karl-Anthony Towns; Efficiency Extraordinaire Two seasons in to what promises to be an illustrious NBA career, Karl-Anthony Towns has dominated defenses since day one in the league, doing it at a historical efficiency. Towns has shown an unbelievable ability to be effective all over the floor, his shot from behind the arc is a work in progress, but his respectable 36.7% clip ranks him as the 2nd best shooter at his position (with a minimum of 120 attempts) KAT showed an inc redible ability to improve the three ball, shooting at 43.4% on 80 attempts over the last two months of the season. The long ball may be a shot that still needs work at times, but inside the arc Karl-Anthony Towns is the definition of an Efficiency Extraordinaire. He shoots 70.7% from inside 3 feet, 50.0% from between 3 and 10 feet, 47.3 from between 10 and 16 feet and 41.6 from between 16 and the 3PT line. Not one spot is a weakness for Towns, he uses jump hooks with both hands regularly, ...

Can Jimmy Butler be the leader Minnesota needs? The trade that sent Jimmy Butler to the Timberwolves was by no comparison the biggest in the Minnesota Timberwolves short and sad history. Losing 2x Slam Dunk champion, rising star and fan favourite Zach Lavine may have stung for most fans, and may continue to sting if Lavine reaches the lofty heights that Wolves fans expect from the UCLA product. All this pain can be easily forgotten though when we cast our minds to the man received in the trade; Jimmy Butler. The basic and advanced statistics all work favourably for Jimmy G. Buckets, but what the Timberwolves are really looking for and really lacking is a veteran leader, one who can show the young core how it's done; on and off the court. Timberwolves fans have seen a lot of their teams veterans over the last few years lack the on-court production, the off-court leadership is there but they were simply far past their prime or role players who couldn't help as much...

Roster Previews - Part Five Karl-Anthony Towns C/PF - 7'0 2016/17 Season Stats: 25.1PPG - 12.3RPG - 2.7APG - 1.3BPG - 2.6TOPG - 54.2FG% - 36.7 3PT% - 83.2FG% A Rookie Of The Year campaign unlike one we have seen for some time to begin his NBA career was merely just a teaser for what the 7'0 Kentucky product had in store for us in 2016/17. Towns showed vast improvements across the board offensively all while shooting the exact same field goal percentage he did the previous year (54%, on 4 more shots per game). The mid range game is still as deadly as ever, and the 3 point shot became a genuine weapon this season making him all the more troublesome for opposing defenders. Surprisingly, his defense seemed to actually regress this past season, his Blocks Per Game numbers dropped (1.7 to 1.3) and he looked lost in Tom Thibodeau's defensive schemes and rotations at times. Another training camp with this same system should work wonders for Towns who...

Roster Previews - Part Four Taj Gibson PF - 6'9 2016/17 Season Stats: 10.8PPG - 6.2RPG - 0.9APG - 0.8BPG - 52.0FG% - 71.5FT% The second signing of a prolific off season in Minneapolis, Taj Gibson will be looking to reunite with former bulls coach Tom Thibodeau and bring some much needed toughness to a team that has been bullied lately in the tough Western Conference. It was an inconsistent season in 2016-17 for the 6'9 Forward, yet still efficient as he has been for the majority of his career. Gibson averaged 11.6 Points Per Game in his 55 games for Chicago posting a 3.3 Win Share Rating and an above league average PER(Player Efficiency Rating) at 15.4. A mid-season trade to the Russell Westbrook show at the Oklahoma City Thunder saw his Points Per Game drop to 9.0, his Win Share Rating drop to 0.8 and his PER drop to a below league average 13.8. At 32 years of age, a fresh new team with some familiar faces may be just what Gibson needs to motivate hi...

Free Agent Search - Part Three Gerald Henderson Age 29 - 6'5 - SG 2016/17 Season Stats: 9.2PPG - 2.6RPG - 1.6APG - 0.6SPG - 0.9TOPG - 42.3FG% - 35.3 3PT% - 80.6FT% Why the Timberwolves should want Gerald Henderson: Gerald Henderson isn't going to blow you away while looking at his statistics, but one think does jump out at you - his consistency. Henderson has only averaged under 9 Points Per Game once in his career (8.7) although never playing over 33 minutes in his career. Henderson has the ability to find ways to score and be a solid rotational player. The 3PT shot isn't extremely consistent, but his 35.3% is the exact same as the season before(also a career high) showing that Henderson has put in significant work to improve his shooting, a desperate need for this new look Wolves squad. Henderson could easily become a reliable second or third option of the bench this year, to help solidify the wing rotation. Why the Timberwolves should...

Andrew Wiggins - A Max Player ?     Multiple media outlets in the past few weeks have reported that Andrew Wiggins is on the verge of signing a 5 Year 148 Million Dollar extension, I will attempt to break down whether the statistics and the all important eye test prove Wiggins to be worthy of the hefty contract he will sign.   At 22 Years of age Andrew Wiggins has provided a shining ray of hope for Timberwolves fans since the moment it was announced he had been traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers, months before his first NBA game.   Wiggins' scoring has been prolific since his Freshman year in the league, averaging over 20 Points Per Game (20.4) for his career, despite still being the age of most seniors in college. Wiggins is on track to become one of the Minnesota Franchise greats, if he isn't already, Wiggins sits in the top 10 for Franchise Leaders in: -Points(#6) -Points Per Game(#3) -2PT Field Goals(#8) -Free Throws Made(#5)   Wi...

Free Agent Search - Part Two     Gerald Green    Age 31 - 6'7 - SF/SG 2016/17 Season Stats: 5.6PPG - 1.8RPG - 0.7APG - 0.2SPG - 0.5TOPG - 40.9FG% - 35.1 3PT% - 80.5FT% Why the Timberwolves should want Gerald Green: Limited minutes last year really held Green back from being a reliable back up in Boston last year, something that didn't matter with the deep team the celtics possess, but Minnesota are a different story. Green's Three Point shot throughout his career is an interesting case study, he has shot over 38% from three in four different seasons, yet shot under 35% in four also, with his career average of 36.1% still serviceable enough to provide the shooting the Wolves need and another effective scoring punch off the bench. Per 36 Minute statistics can be misleading at times, but Green boasts a Per Game average of over 17 Points and 5 Rebounds, anchoring the fact that Green still has years left in him and can well outplay his 11.4 Min...

Roster Previews - Part Three   Jimmy Butler   SG/SF - 6'7     2016/17 Season Stats: 23.9PPG - 6.2RPG - 5.5APG - 1.9SPG - 2.1TOPG - 45.5FG% - 36.7 3PT% - 86.5FT% Jimmy G Buckets. The centrepiece in a trade that has jolted the Timberwolves to playoff contention. The football carrying smiling assassin. Career year is an understatement when talking about Butler's 2016/17 campaign, careers highs in points, rebounds, assists and steals while taking over 2 more free throws per game shot him from all star to bonafide 2 way star. According to basketball-reference.com basic and advanced statistics back up Jimmy G's step in to one of the games elites, take a look: In 2016/17 he ranked - .4th in Free Throws Made .5th in Steals Per Game .13th in Player Efficiency Rating(PER) .11th in Offensive Rating .3rd in Offensive Win Shares .15th in Defensive Win Shares .3rd in Overall Win Shares .10th in Box Plus/Minus That my friends, is dominance o...

Free Agent Search - Part One Tony Allen Age  35 - 6'4 - SG   2016/17 Season Stats: 9.1PPG - 5.5RPG - 1.4APG - 1.6SPG - 1.4TOPG - 46.1FG% - 27.8 3PT - 61.5FT% Why the Timberwolves should want Tony Allen: Tony Allen is a rare breed in the NBA in this day and age, he is an absolute elite defender while really possessing no other glaring skills. His defense is something the Timberwolves sorely need, although the acquisitions of Jimmy Butler and Taj Gibson will help sure up the defensive woes somewhat, the addition of Tony Allen turns the Wolves in to a team with multiple offensive stars as well as multiple lockdown defenders. Tony Allen has been an All Defensive Team member the last 3 seasons, and 6 overall in his career. Allen led the league last year in Steal Percentage and is 2nd among all active players today, he also 5th in Defensive Rating among all active players. To put it lightly, Tony Allen is a beast on the defensive end. Why the Timberwolves sh...

Roster Previews - Part Two Andrew Wiggins   SG/SF - 6'8 2016/17 Season Stats: 23.7PPG - 4.0RPG - 2.3APG - 1.0SPG - 2.2TOPG - 45.2FG% - 35.6 3PT% - 76.0FT% Andrew Wiggins, a barometer of the Timberwolves successes and misfortunes(more of the latter lately, let's be honest) has continued to grow every year throughout his three in the league so far. Wiggins scoring has increased from 16.9 to 20.7 and again jumping over a field goal per game higher this year at 23.6, the true stat measuring his scoring improvement is the efficiency, which has never regressed through his time as a Wolf, while also adding a league average shot from behind the arc last year (35.6%) which makes him all the more dangerous. The rest of his game as we know is unpolished, but not a complete write off by any means. Although he did become a better drive and kick passer throughout the year, his assists numbers remained low and his vision can become tunnelled at times. Rebounding is the a...

  Roster Previews - Part One Jeff Teague PG - 6'2 2016-17 Season Stats: 15.3PPG - 4.0RPG - 7.8APG - 1.2SPG - 2.6TOPG - 44.2FG% - 35.7 3PT% - 86.7FT% After six years with Ricky Rubio at the helm, Head Coach and President Of Basketball Operations Tom Thibodeau decided to usher in a new era of Timberwolves basketball with former Atlanta and Indiana Point Guard Jeff Teague as the teams floor general and first official signing of the free agency period. Last season was an up and down year for the 2014-15 All Star at his new club in Indiana, he averaged over 15 points (15.3) for the third year running and upped his assists per game to career high 7.8, although his 35.7% from behind the arc was a drop off from 2015-16 where he shot 40% from three. This year Teague will need to get back to that above average three point shooting to help with Minnesota's spacing woes, his main improvement over the former incumbent Rubio. Timberwolves fans will be expecting this,...